The best blackout curtains to help you beat bright sunlight (and the heat)

Posted:
Wednesday, July 11, 2018 9:38 AM EDT

By Lucas Coll

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There are a variety of sleep gadgets and smartphone apps to help you get some sleep, but sometimes the best fix is the simplest one. Blackout curtains are an easy solution if you work odd hours, have many windows in your home, or are particularly sensitive to light and find the daylight hours to be negatively affecting your sleep in the bedroom or even your relaxation in your common rooms.

Blackout curtains do more than just keep sunlight out of your face, though. The thicker material also provides insulation (you’ll often see these listed as “thermal curtains”) that can block out heat during the summer and lock it in during the winter. In winter, when sunlight hours are shorter and heat is precious, blackout curtains can help to keep warmth inside a drafty room. The takeaway here is that light-blocking curtains can regulate the temperature in your home, saving you money on your energy bills.

There are a ton of blackout curtains on Amazon, indeed there are so many that it can easily give a shopper choice paralysis. To help you save some time and money, we’ve gone ahead and narrowed these down to the top six light-blocking drapes based on cost, quality, and Amazon customer reviews.

Most thermal blackout curtains come in pairs (or single panels which are designed to be used as pairs), but this extra-wide light-blocking curtain from RHF is a better option if you’re looking to darken a large window or a set of glass patio doors. The RHF curtain’s thick polyester material is soft and thermally insulated against both heat and cold, and the brass curtain rod grommets are bronzed for a unique look.

The RHF room-darkening thermal blackout curtain is available in a variety of light and dark colors as well as different sizes, with 100-inch wide panels starting at $30.

For a solid, no-frills set of blackout curtains, Amazon has you covered with its own AmazonBasics house brand. Instead of grommets for the curtain rod, these thick triple-weave polyester drapes feature a channel that completely covers the rod. This provides better sound insulation and light blockage as they lay flatter against the window and let less sunlight in through the top where the curtain meets the wall. If all you’re looking for is a set of solid-hued darkening drapes to block out those pesky UV rays, then this is the home decor you’re looking for. And with that added protection from outside noise, these washable curtain panels can help protect you from any cheery birds or happy neighbors frolicking outside your window in the morning.

They’re available in a number of different colors and sizes, with sets of two (including Velcro tie-backs) starting at $23. Despite being labeled a “basic” drape, these room darkening curtains are surprising high-quality.

For a more standard (and slightly cheaper) pair of grommet curtains, these machine-washable panels from Nicetown are one of the best-reviewed sets on Amazon. The thick light-blocking polyester is super soft to the touch, while the round metal grommets slide right over just about any curtain rod if you’ve got thicker curtain rods, then drapes like the AmazonBasics with a sewn rod pocket may not fit, so these are a better option. If you’re the kind of sleeper who doesn’t want light, heat, or anything sun related to touch you in the morning, a set of thermal grommet curtain panels are exactly what you need.

The Nicetown thermal curtains are available in more colors, as well as shorter sizes, with prices for a short set starting at around $19, because laboratory-tested thermal insulation shouldn’t cost a fortune.

Another top-rated thermal blackout curtain brand is Deconovo. While these curtains feature a grommet design that’s similar to the Nicetown, you have the option to buy these as a single curtain panel perfect for small windows or for other creative uses. The Deconovo blackout curtains also feature a variety of brighter colors including green, red, and blue, if you’re looking for something different than the darker shades (just bear in mind that lighter colors won’t create a blackout sleeping environment, although they will still darken the room considerably). Each curtain panel features thermal tab tops and individual grommets which work together to protect you from harmful UV rays that try to filter through your window.

These solid hue blackout panels ring in at around $20 per pair, with single panels starting at around $9.

If you’re searching for the customer favorite blackout curtains on Amazon, look no further than the Best Home Fashion insulated drapes, which currently boast a 4.5-star rating based on more than 5,000 reviews. Along with thick triple-weave technology, these curtains have a unique rod pocket design that uses the fabric itself as grommets instead of a standard sewn sleeve or metal ring you’d see with other grommet blackout curtains. This blocks light and sound better while allowing the drapes to work well with thicker curtain rods.

The Best Home Fashion thermal blackout curtains also come in a great range of colors and different sizes, with most pairs costing $22 to $24.

Finishing off our roundup is this set of blackout drapes from Miuco, which, like the AmazonBasics and Best Home Fashion curtains, feature thick and soft triple-weave technology for excellent light-blocking and insulating abilities. While the grommet design is similar to the Nicetown curtains, these have the advantage of coming with tie-backs for pulling the panels back when you do want to let some light in. The Miuco blackout drapes start at $20 per set and are available in a large number of different colors and a few different lengths.

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